Oh dear…was shocked to see this just now. More sadness this week. 
RIP Anthony.
Somehow I have never seen his show (!) but was very sorry to see this.
Huge fans of his show here and are extremely sad and shocked. RIP, Anthony, you are already missed.
This one hits hard. One of the things I always appreciated about Bourdain is that he was never exploitative of the culture and people he visited and filmed. He let the people speak for themselves and it was clear that he genuinely enjoyed meeting with, eating with, and celebrating with people from all over the world.
I, like many, learned so much from his shows- so much more than just about food. He will genuinely be missed. I hope he’s at peace now, whatever the afterlife may hold. RIP.
I felt ambivalent about him. I agreed with everything he said but he was very sarcastic and borderline mean. I couldn’t watch his shows after the first one I saw, where he got drunk and started ranting about Kim Kardashian. I’m no Kim fan but it was just ugly. Some of that impulse he must have aimed at himself, which is horrible.
Here’s a piece about his show in Sicily when things weren’t going well. He’s funny, but doesn’t seem resilient. I guess that was a warning sign.
https://www.eater.com/2013/10/14/6352563/the-parts-unknown-sicily-episode-just-the-one-liners
In other bad news, suicide rates have gone up dramatically from 1999 to 2016. Slightly less than half the people were diagnosed with a mental health issue. Of course, 9/11, Katrina, and economic busts happened during those times too.
https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2018/06/07/us/07reuters-usa-health-suicide.html
I loved his book, Kitchen Confidential. I wasn’t really a fan of his shows for the same reasons @greenwitch stated, although I did watch and enjoy the episodes with Obama and Robuchon. Regardless, I did appreciate the fact that he was a straight shooter not afraid to speak his mind even though I didn’t agree with some of his opinions.
I feel terrible for his girlfriend, Asia Argento, who’s already going through some issues with backlash to the #metoo movement in Italy.
Did he have a different reaction to Kate Spade?
“He’s funny, but doesn’t seem resilient. I guess that was a warning sign.”
Well, he did survive a lot, including drug addiction. I don’t think one can point to one episode where a lot of idiotic things happened and his sarcastic wit that he used to respond to it as a summation of his resiliency. Sounds like you didn’t actually watch that episode just referencing some one liners from it? Context might help.
As much as we speculate, none of will ever know what leads others to take their lives - Spade, Bourdain, whomever in our personal lives we know - as we haven’t walked in their shoes, don’t know their inner thoughts. Even people who seem public, even people we live with all our lives have more private thoughts and parts to themselves than we’ll ever see. I understand the shock of such things ( I feel it as well, definitely for Bourdain as I was a fan) and a desire to try to make sense of it but I find the armchair psychiatrist stuff that always surrounds these more disheartening than the acts themselves.
I also stopped watching after awhile because he just seemed too mean sometimes. He could be very arrogant. As it sinks in over the past few hours it really isn’t a total shock, he did suffer from addiction which made me think he had life long issues. I am saddened by how often we’re hearing of this happening.
I loved his show and the many interesting countries he visited. A very sad week with his death and Kate Spades passing. Depression is a very serious condition and not to be taken lightly.
On a positive note, I hope that more people learn and talk about depression and it’s causes. It’s time to take away the "Shame of Mental Illiness ".
National Suicide Prevention Hotline
1-800-273-8255
If you need them, they are there. They will talk to you.
H, S and I all really liked his show. S was a huge fan. So sad for his family.
Just saying. I never cared much for Kate Spade, just not so interested in her lines or even purses (when I say I’m a minimalist, I mean using my pockets or a little shoulder strap travel wallet.) Otoh, cooking and many things food are among what drives me. I generally didn’t watch him, the food I did see on a few programs was, shall we say, outside my interests.
But it strikes me, here we sit, arguing over colleges and various foolishnesses, and we are losing someone’s friends and family every day. I’ve got two in my cricle I was already worried about- and for whom I can do nothing but hope.
Best to you all. Some of you will get it when I say, there’ something to like, even love, in all of you, all of us. Be kind.
Bourdain’s passing is incredibly sad and along with Kate Spade’s illustrates the rising suicide rate. Prayers with the families, especially those teenage daughters
Well, I was sitting around a group of psychiatrists and NPs last night, listening to a talk on meds for bipolar. No one mentioned Kate Spade, but a focus on how resistant people are to comply with meds, especially a shot that can last a month. People miss their highs, feel it blunts their creativity, and, in general, feel like they are in a fog.
I am in no way tryinG to guess what goes in people’s minds. It was fortunate to have this meeting, planned a month ago, because it’s been a hard week for patients and therapists.
“People miss their highs, feel it blunts their creativity, and, in general, feel like they are in a fog.”
That doesn’t sound like a great way to go through life either…
Thanks, Dosch. I now realize my statement came out extreme. I was referring to mainly the non-functioning people. I’d give an example but I think I’d dig myself in deeper. 
Straight shooter. A bit profane, but seemingly always in a jovial context. Refreshingly honest about food. Never condescending to foreign cultures.
A tribute from Sandra Lee, whom he famously mocked over the years:
“Anthony was a larger than life personality with so much talent and even though he could be incredibly critical of others, somehow that was part of his charm. The food entertainment family is just that, a family, and every member has their place and unique personality with a specific place within our family.
We don’t always agree or get along but we stick together and we all truly love and adore one another(like a family) no matter what. I am so very sad. He was a really gifted, smart, articulate man and his humor will be missed.”
DH loved his shows. It took a while for me to get used to his brash edgy personality. He seemed to be very genuine and honest. Bourdain’s journeys to places off the beaten path, the way he interacted with the locals and how he used food to immerse himself into a culture inspired us to be travelers and not tourists. He will be missed.